Jack was bending over into an empty display case as he refilled it with his signature chocolate cupcakes. They were the very ones that put him on the map and made it possible to open up his dream shop. Sweet Nothings was his pride and joy. The French inspired Bakery and Bistro has thus far been his greatest achievement. He could hear the distant ching of the cash register as he placed the last of the cupcakes from his baking tray into the case. The sound of money always put a smile on his face. It was just a few weeks until Valentines and by far one of the busiest holiday's he faced every year. The challenges of running a small business reared its ugly head around this time. He employed a small staff and when times became this hectic he was forced to make everyone including himself work extra hard. This usually meant long days and late nights for him in order to make the deadlines of all the orders he received. He was lucky that most of his staff had been with him since the beginning and had pretty much become family, so they were always more than willing to step up and take on the necessary responsibility.
The continued ching ching of the register must have drowned out the ring of the telephone because he never heard it, but the panicked voice of his cashier, Trudy, ripped him from his meandering thoughts before he had a chance to retreat to his kitchen.
"Jack, I'm so sorry but I have to go! Jesse's been taken to the hospital, he's real sick. I'm so sorry; I know this is a bad time." She was removing her black cotton apron with the Sweet Nothings logo printed across the front as the panic in her voice became more than evident. Jack had no idea what it would be like to find out your 6 year old son has been rushed to the emergency room.
"Oh, man Trudy. Don't worry we'll be okay, you just take care of Jesse. Go on get out of here, send him my love okay?" Trudy grabbed her handbag from under the counter and in a blink of an eye she was gone. Damn, now what was he going to do? He couldn't bake and take care of the front counter. He suddenly became aware of about a dozen eyes boring into him like lasers. There were a hand full of customers waiting to place their orders. Some were locals getting their usual while on their lunch break and others were placing orders for the upcoming Valentine holiday. Shit!
**********
It was almost closing time when the rush finally died down and he could take in a long deep breath, the relief that it was almost over washed over him. He had survived. Luckily he had a well trained staff of assistance in the kitchen that got them through the day. There was Chuck the chef that managed the food that was served at the Bistro and his sue chef Ronny. They were both geniuses when it came to good food. Then there were his personal assistance Tom and Laura who helped him with the baking and decorating. Laura in particular was a true artist when it came to cake decorating. If it wasn't for this group he would have never made it through the day. However if he didn't find some help fast he definitely would not make it to Valentine's Day that's for sure. He had gotten a call from Trudy that afternoon and thanks to the powers that be, Jesse will be fine but he needs to stay home from school for the next two weeks, which means so does Trudy. He'll never make his deadlines without some help. He has a part time girl that helps out on the weekends and some nights but she goes to college full time so she can't pick up the slack while Trudy's gone. There were only two weeks left until Valentine's Day and he already had more orders than he knew what to do with and that didn't include his daily business. What the fuck was he going to do now! He raked his hand through his sandy blond hair leaning against the back counter facing the cash register. He was so engrossed in thought he almost didn't hear the woman who had walked right up to him and started talking.
"Um, excuse me. You seem pretty busy here. I've been waiting for things to slow down a little so I could talk with you. You wouldn't by any chance be hiring right now would you? I'm new to the city and I've been everywhere looking for work but I guess with the economy and all no one seems to be hiring. You're my last stop and quite frankly my last hope." Victoria didn't mean to sound so desperate, but she was. And after a day's worth of disappointment she had lost all sense of decorum and was resorting to groveling.
Suddenly Jack was blinded by the bright light of salvation. He couldn't even focus on the woman who had spoken. The only thing that penetrated his fog of despair were the words that came from her lips. Thank God!!
***********
"I can do just about anything. I can wash dishes or wait on tables. I can handle a cash register or mop floors. I'll pretty much do anything." She shifted her weight from one foot to the other while fiddling with a piece of paper in her hand. "I have a resume." She lifted her hand out and nervously extended the paper towards Jack.
Jack was so excited he jumped forward from where he had been standing before she had approached him. He grabbed the paper from her hand and only glanced at the heading that showed her name.
"Victoria is it? Well I have to say you couldn't have showed up at a better time, because you pretty much had me from the moment you asked if I was hiring." At that moment his hazel eyes locked with hers and he about stumbled over himself. He was attempting to walk around the counter and size her up to make sure he got a good vibe from her, like she could handle the job. All though at this point it didn't really matter. That was the first time he actually looked at her. She was a tiny little thing with a slender waist and fairly large breasts for someone her size. She was wearing a fitted black pencil skirt that hugged her hips and thighs just right and stopped about mid calf. The strappy four inch heels she wore showed off her dainty well manicured feet, for a second he wondered what those feet attached to those killer legs would look like thrown over his shoulder.
Focus, Jack,
focus
. Her sizzling red silk blouse was buttoned low to show off just a hint of the swell of her breasts. Of course the heart shaped pendent she wore around her slender neck that hung just above her cleavage helped show off her ample chest as well. She had the most beautiful ebony hair that trailed soft silky waves down to the middle of her back. As gorgeous as she was it was her eyes that intrigued him. They were as dark as the midnight sky. He had never seen eyes so dark before. Then she batted her long lush lashes at him and he about came undone. He was grateful for the apron he was wearing; he hoped it was hiding his obvious attraction to her.
Damn keep it together Jack, you need her. You don't want to scare her off before she's even started.
He swallowed hard, cleared his throat and asked, "So when can you start?"
*************
She couldn't believe it, she finally landed a job. Okay so maybe it wasn't her dream job but after weeks and weeks of nothing but rejection it was something. At least she would be able to pay the bills. Beside there was a bonus, her boss was HOT. She had hoped he hadn't noticed her drooling all over herself when he stepped in front of her. He was tall with short scruffy blond hair. He had a bit of that five o'clock shadow coming through along his chiseled jaw line that made him look rugged and very masculine. His broad shoulders made her think about running her fingers along his chest. When he finally removed his apron and leaned back against the counter in front of her she got a glimpse of his rippled abs as his t shirt was pulled tight against his body.
For
God's sake Vic he's your boss. You've got to keep it professional, you need this job.
She walked into her small studio apartment and dropped onto the hide a bed as she started to peel her shoes from her aching feet. Damn heels, why did she torture herself with these things? Okay so they made her feel sexy and just a little taller. She was only 5'2 but with those heels she was at least 5'4 maybe even 5'5. She didn't feel like such a midget when she wore them. Of course that didn't change the fact that they felt like she had razor blades piercing her skin all day. Oh well that was the price you paid to look good.
After she had stripped down to her bra and panties she settled in with a glass of wine and a pint of Ben and Jerry's in celebration of her new job and handsome boss. She lived alone so there was no need for modesty, besides she was comfortable with her body. It was her boyfriend or rather ex boyfriend now, that had a problem with it. She found him screwing around with some tall lanky toothpick with blond hair. So who needs him, good riddance. He was the reason she was in this mess anyway. He had charged up her credit cards then stiffed her on the rent. When she lost her job she thought she was going to lose it. But now thanks to Jack and his Sweet Nothings things were starting to look up.
************
The next two weeks went by in a haze of chocolate and fondant. Jack couldn't have asked for a better cashier than Victoria or Vic as she liked to be called. Vic was much more than a cashier, stepping into many roles as were necessary. She had even shown him how he could make some small changes to his overhead expenses saving him a boat load of money every year. This girl was a keeper; of course that was the problem. He wanted to keep her all right but as much more than just his employee. He couldn't get her off his mind and when she was standing close he wanted nothing more than to pull her into his arms and kiss her soft sweet lips. He always managed to control himself though. As much as he wanted her she was still an employee and that would be inappropriate,
wouldn't it?
She was killing him though; everyday she wore something innocently provocative. She seemed to be completely unaware of how she affected him. Today was no exception. She had on a pair of skin tight jeans that showed off the full roundness of her ass and a low cut wrap around blouse with it tied in a neat little bow at the side of her waist, in her favorite shade of cranberry red. And let's not forget about the black suede boots with a four inch heel that came just below the knee. How she got through the day in those things he'd never know. That damn bow at her waist was all he could think about. She was like a present waiting to be unwrapped. Every time she walked past him he caught her scent of sweet vanilla and spicy orange, all his favorite things. Damn, all he wanted this Valentines' was to reach out and touch her, well okay so he wanted to do a lot more than that. Putting his libido aside for a moment she really had been a great addition to his staff and wanted to show his appreciation. He had a special surprise waiting for her after the store closed; it was Valentine's Day after all. They had spent a lot of time together over the past two weeks and had learned a lot about her including her dead beat ex. What he did to her made his blood boil and if he ever had the misfortune of meeting him he'd make sure his fist made a lasting impression. He figured she could use a little pick me up, let her know someone cared and appreciated her just the way she was. He didn't know why he felt so protective of her. There was something about her that made him want to take care of her, not that she needed to be taken care of. Vic was a more than capable woman but she had this sexy vulnerability about her he found endearing.
There was only 20 minutes left until closing and he couldn't wait.
***********
There was only a few minutes left before closing time and Vic was getting a bit nervous.
She had bought Jack a Valentine's gift and was anxious about giving it to him. She didn't want to give him the wrong impression but he had been so nice to her and she couldn't thank him enough for giving her a job. When she saw the coin bank in the shape of a cupcake she couldn't resist. It wasn't much but she hoped he would appreciate the gesture. She wasn't sure his male sensibilities would know what to do with a cupcake bank but she thought he could use it as a kind of a tip jar or something. All though he made his living baking cupcakes he was definitely as male as they come. Tall, muscled, rugged and masculine right down to his very male musk she had become very accustomed to. When sex experts talked about pheromones and stuff she thought it was a bunch of crap but after spending a few weeks with Jack it all made sense. Whenever he was near, her knees would go week and as soon as she caught his scent her pussy would ache and the moisture would build between her legs. Damn, she never wanted anyone as bad as she wanted Jack. What she wouldn't give to wrap her legs around his waist and feel his hands all over her body. Those hands looked like they knew their way around a lot more than just a kitchen. Oh well, he was her boss and she would have to keep her desire for him in check.
